Recognised as one of the most respected Landfill Communities Fund distributors, Biffaward has allocated more than £80 million to hundreds of worthwhile projects throughout the UK. It has set up its Small Grants Scheme as a route for small organisations to access lower levels of funding, quickly and easily.

In order to be eligible, projects must be within 10 miles of a Biffa operation. Biffa's Rainham Depot is 8.94 miles away from the Club, as the crow flies. There are other criteria, and an assessment process which all projects must pass before being considered by the Biffaward Board.

Funding may be given to projects such as wildlife conservation and habitat creation, improvements to local amenities and projects which improve community access to sports, culture or recreation.

Brentwood Cricket Club's application to Biffaward's Small Grants Scheme for £5,000 was approved in May 2007.

For further details about Biffaward please log on to the web-site www.biffaward.org

The Brentwood Cricket Club Project:

Essential cricket equipment at Brentwood Cricket Club

With some 180 Colts members it is imperative that our club can offer the community a high standard of cricket coaching, using the best facilities and equipment available, but in a safe working environment.

The aim of our project is to replace certain cricket equipment at the club such as broken mobile net cages, rotten wooden sight screens and to purchase essential cricket training equipment for our ever increasing Colts membership division.

Firstly we need to secure enough finance to purchase two full sized polyethylene sight screens, one portable training cricket net and training equipment.

All of this essential equipment would need to be available and located at the Old County Ground, Shenfield Road, Brentwood, Essex (the home ground of Brentwood Cricket Club) at the earliest possible convenience. Once sufficient funds have been secured we will negotiate the cost, delivery and installation of the equipment through a reputable cricket equipment supplier.

These improvements will enhance our facilities as a community premier league cricket club focusing on youth cricketers of the future, and help many of them towards achieving their ambitions of playing school, club and in some cases county cricket.

The club has received official confirmation that our application to Biffaward has been successful and that the Biffaward Board has awarded Brentwood Colts Cricket Club £5,000 - the maximum available through their Small Grants Scheme.

Biffaward's Assistant Fund Manager informed us that the committee had approved the award, however, under the scheme's criteria it would be unable to offer finance for the purchase of the training equipment.

Ken Lingwood (Chairman of Brentwood CC), Malcolm Webb (President) and Dave Barbone (Colts Chairman) and everyone associated with Brentwood Cricket Club are thrilled to hear the news of our successful application and wish to formally thank everyone at Biffaward and especially members of the Board for their kind generosity and support for our club's project.

A quote from the President of Brentwood Cricket Club - Malcolm Webb

"This is marvellous news. It will enable us to purchase, two polyethylene sight screens and one mobile net cage, which will mean that we can continue to accept new junior members who want to play cricket at the top club in the area and be trained by our team of qualified coaches.

Until we received this grant we were resigned to having to close our membership to new colts, not because of lack of space, or qualified coaches, but simply because of lack of equipment to cope with any more than the 180 colts of whom we already give coaching to every Friday evening throughout the summer period.

Date: May 2007